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Attractions in Udon Thani Province

Getting away from the mayhem of the city really does help to improve a visit to Udon Thani, and gives you a reasonable insight in to rural Issan life. While you may find plenty to keep you occupied in the city, getting 'out and about' should feature during your stay, even if it is only to see a few of the many attractions scattered around Udon Thani Province. There are attractions as far west as Loei, which will take a full day, a truly stunning attraction at Wat Phu Thok, in the north east of the province, which can easily occupy a full day, to the north we have Nong Khai with the highly popular Sala Kaew Ku, where ancient statues abound, and to the south and heading toward Khon Kaen, there is the King Cobra Village and Nam Rua National Park. Much of the scenery between Udon Thani city and the outlaying regions is largely flat lands, with little more than a few villages, and many rice fields.

However, if you head west, the level of the land drops by about 100m or so, near Nong Bua Lam Phu, and beyond that city there are many limestone hills, and caves, where some wonderful views and photographs are readily available. The further west you go, the more spectacular the scenery becomes.

Please check out our Itinerary Suggestionsfor an idea of where you can go to enjoy a full day of sightseeing.

Top attractions are marked with a red star on the image.

​Ban Chiang Museum

Ban Chiang is divided in to two sections. The first section you arrive at is the museum housing mostly pottery along with anything associated with the ancient culture of Ban Chiang that has been unearthed over the years.

​Butta Bat Bua Bok

Just a few kilometers south of Phu Phra Bat Historical Park the strange temple of Butta Bat Bua Bok, which should be visited just to see just odd it really is, if for no other reason. Among the oddest sights, only for its size, is 1.5m long Buddha footprint, which is said to have been cast during the Lord Buddha's perambulations in ancient times.

Erawan Cave

Erawan Cave is an absolute 'must see' attraction in Udon Thani Province, and the only cave we have visited where you can walk in and go exploring, although there are parts of the cave that remain off limits to visitors.

Fossil Museum

The Fossil Museum near Udon Thani is rather small and rather unspectacular, and perhaps only really worthwhile visiting en route to somewhere else in the general direction. It is loosely called a 'Dinosaur Park' with shells and fossils but the reality is that you should not get too excited. The museum features fossils of shells from the Jurassic period, which date back to 140 - 150 million years ago

​Ho Chi Minh Historical Park

The Ho Chi Minh Historical Park, located some 10km west of the Udon Thani ring road, first opened it's doors to the public in 2001 yet has remained a relatively unknown attraction. There are two distinct parts to this historical park with a large Vietnamese style building on the left which houses the museum displays and on the right are a number of reconstructed buildings where Ho Chin Minh once lived.

​Hui Luang Dam

The reservoir dam at Huai Luang is located off the Udon Thani to Nong Bua Lam Phu Highway, a little to the north of the Fossil Museum. The reservoir has an area of about 20,000 rai, and was built for fishery, agricultural, and electricity generation purposes.

Khon Kaen Zoo

The Khon Kaen Zoo has come a long way with some great improvements in recent years, and in 2014, the Khon Kaen Water Park was opened, creating another new attraction in the Udon Thani area. The zoo itself is still not large, certainly not compared to Chiang Mai zoo, but in this heat, do you really want to be walking for miles and miles?

King Cobra Village

The King Cobra Village near Khon Kaen has become quite a major tourist attraction, featuring an entertaining and decent range of snakes on display with 'staged' Snake fights, as the centerpiece of a visit to the park. It is considered as one of the 'must see' attractions in Udon Thani Province, especially if you like getting close up to the snakes.

Na Kha Silk Village

Ban Na Kha Silk Village is a well known tourist attraction in Udon Thani Province, and is one of the closest attractions to Udon Thani city, just a 15km trip on the Nong Khai road to the north on highway 2. The Silk Village is near impossible to miss, featuring a massive gold Buddha that well and truly catches the eye....

Na Yung Som Forest Park

Na Yung Som Forest Park (full name is Na Yung Nam Som Forest Park) is a national park consisting of some fairly dense forest on the Na Yung mountain ridge. To get the most out of a visit here, and to get the best photographs will require a reasonable amount of leg-work, as there is so much to see, although not all is spectacular.

​Nong Khai Aquarium

This large green aquarium displays freshwater and salt water fish from Thailand and beyond, featuring the local giant Mekong catfish in a 'giant tank' as the star attraction for the majority of visitors. It is a fun place to visit, but strangely located some way out of town, and is not served by public transport.

Nong Khai Crocodile Farm

The Nong Khai Crocodile Farm is quite a new attraction, in relative terms. The 'farm' is open 7 days a week, from 8:00am to 5:00pm, costing 30 baht for children and 50 baht for adults (Thai and visitors). On entering the park, it is hard to believe that there is actually anything here, other than perhaps some kind of gardens. But as you pass the 'tunnel'.....

Phu Foi Lom

Phu Foi Lom (also known as Phu Phoilom) is predominantly a park where you can find some rare plants and a somewhat diverse ecological system. The park is worth a visit providing you don't expect too much. While there is plenty to see, including some nice landscape views, you really need to appreciate nature to the full to really appreciate this park.

​Phu Hin Lat Cho Fa

Phu Hin Lat Cho Fa is a mountain in the Phu Phan Range. Okay, the term mountain is rather loosely used here and anything that resembles high hill in Udon is classed as a mountain, even at just 100m high. Phu Hin Lat Cho Fa offers scenic views of natural beauty as well as bio–diversity and rare species.

​Phu Kao Phu Phan National Park

Phu Kao Phu Phan Park was established in 1985, and became the 50th national park in Thailand. It covers an area of about 322 square kilometres, so clearly far too large to explore in a short space of time. The park, which is adjacent to the banks of the Ubonratana reservoir, features two sandstone 'mountains' that are separated from each other...

​Phu Kradaeng Forest Park

Bhu Kradaeng is a forest park of 17.87 square kilometers, and has been opened as a park since May 1996. The Forest Park is a group of mountains on Bhu Parn Ranges but it is separated clearly from the ranges in the south. Both in the east and the west, this park is connected to the plain in all directions.

Phu Pha Ya Cave

A little to the north of Loei city (pronounced Loy), is a bat cave at Phu Pha Ya bat cave, where some 6 million Thailand Roundleaf Bat roost during the day, venturing out just before dusk for their evening feeding period. The park is not very easy to find without spoken Thai or the ability to read Thai, as it is not considered to be one of the main attractions.

​Phu Phra Bat Park

Phu Phra Bat Historical Park is one of the outstanding attractions in Udon Thani Province, not only for the stunning and bizarre rocks, but the superb spiritual and religious shrines that are present. The early shrines date to the Dvaravati period in the seventh to tenth centuries, featuring Hindu and Buddhist influences.

Red Lotus Sea

The beauty of the lake is best witnessed in the low season, between November and late February. The Red aquatic flowers begin to bloom in October, following the rainy season, reaching full bloom in December through to late January. The best time of day to visit is between 6.00am until around 10.00am.

Than Ngam Park

Than Ngam forest park is in Tambon Nong Saeng, among the forest areas of Khun Huai Kong Si and Khun Huai Sam Thak an, covering an area some 78,125 hectares. Than Ngam was declared as a forest park on the 19th December 1984, and is a mixture of is deciduous forest, of which the major species are ta baek, pradu, makha mong, daeng, krabok, and chingchan.

Sala Kaew Ku

Sala Kaew Ku in Nong Khai ought to be one of the priority attractions when visiting the Udon Thani region, as it is one of the most impressive places in north eastern Thailand. Keeping it simple, Sala Kaew Ku is a site full of statues, of a spiritual nature of course. The park is actually quite bizarre, as it does not appear to have been 'planned' with large sculptures placed here and there.

Than Thip Falls

As with any tourist attraction near Udon Thani, where water has a strong connection, a visit to the Than Thip Falls depends rather heavily on the recent rainfall, and really is only worth a visit during the wet season. When the local rainfall levels are low, there is barely anything more than a trickle of water running down the slopes here, although there is a good chance to see a lot of butterflies on the surrounding dry land.

​Suwannakhuha Cave

Suwannakhuha Cave is perhaps a little misleading by it's name, as the site is more spiritual that it is in cave exploration. Nonetheless, it is a very nice attraction to visit and spend a little time. The entrance gate and road which leads down to the cave and temple is 'typically Thai'. Straight, colourful, tastefully done and attractive, and the temple itself - a sight to behold - even from the entrance point.

Ubonrat Dam

Ubonrat Dam is about 50km north west of Khon Kaen and is an enjoyable place to simply relax and enjoy the view with family and friends. The best time to go, to see the dam in full operation, is of course to visit when the reservoir water levels are high, and the sluice gates fully opened to relieve itself. To get some of the best pictures of the dam, bear to the left, and up a small hill.

If you have a story to tell about any experiences in Udon Thani, or Thailand in general, please visit our contact page to make your submission. Attraction reviews are also welcome, as your experience or viewpoint may be different to ours, and it would be good to give other visitors views.